4 FanDuel Premier League Studs to Target For Matchweek 32
As is the case when playing any sport on FanDuel, it’s imperative to hit on high-priced studs, the players in which you’ve made the biggest investment. This is especially true with strikers in soccer as goals are often the difference between winning and losing in DFS.
Let’s take a look at some high-priced players -- all across the pitch -- who, despite costing a good chunk of change, are worth the investment.
This article is geared toward FanDuel's main slate, which begins at 10 a.m. Saturday and features six matches.
| Matchweek 32 |
|---|
| Saturday, April 8th |
| Hull City at Manchester City |
| Burnley at Middlesbrough |
| Swansea City at West Ham |
| Southampton at West Brom |
| Liverpool at Stoke City |
| Chelsea at Bournemouth |
Let's get to it.
Forward
Sergio Aguero, Manchester City
FanDuel Price: $12,900
Manchester City are probably going to be slate's most popular team as the Sky Blues are a 2-goal home favorite with an eye-popping 2.75-goal implied total for their clash with Hull City. Chelsea are a 1-goal favorite at Bournemouth, but the four other matches are either a pick'ems or have a 0.5-goal spread.
Sergio Aguero should be on a lot of rosters -- and he's the slate's most expensive player by $2,100 -- but he's difficult to fade in a spot this juicy. Hull have allowed 61 goals in 31 Premier League matches, the second-most in the league, and they've given up a whopping 35 goals in 15 away matches. Pep Guardiola's bunch should dominate the ball -- City sit first in possession (60.4%) while Hull is 16th (46.5%) -- and Hull is surrendering the third-most shots per game (17.1).
Aguero has reasserted himself as Manchester City's top goal-scoring weapon since Gabriel Jesus' injury. Over the last five games, he's scored 4 goals and averaged 27.1 FanDuel points per match. Overall, despite being in and out of the starting XI at various points, Aguero has totaled 15 goals in 19 appearances while no other City player has more than 6 goals this season.
Midfielder
Philippe Coutinho, Liverpool
FanDuel Price: $9,500
Due to his rather extreme reliance on goal scoring and recent trend of being subbed off, Coutinho is volatile DFS producer, but he sure is in a good run of form at the moment.
With Adam Lallana and Sadio Mane out, Coutinho should be the hub of the Reds' high-octane attack, and he's scored in two straight matches, including this banger against Everton.
GOAL OF THE SEASON? Coutinho PUSHES @LFC back into the lead thanks to a WONDERGOAL. #PLonNBC pic.twitter.com/8nXLtOSAnk
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) April 1, 2017
The Brazilian put up 30.75 and 45 FanDuel points, respectively, in his last two outings, and he gets a pretty inviting matchup against Stoke. The Potters are allowing 14.5 shots per game, the fourth-most in the league, while Liverpool check in third in shots attempted per match (16.6). The Reds lead the league in shots per game in road matches (16) and are a 0.5-goal favorite.
Defender
Harry Maguire, Hull City
FanDuel Price: $6,400
With Hull City a massive underdog, the Tigers' defenders are in a great spot to rack up a plethora of defensive statistics at the Etihad.
Both Maguire and Andrea Ranocchia ($6,300), Hull's two center-backs offer great floors. Maguire is averaging 19.8 FanDuel points per match for the season, and he's scored at least 17 FanDuel points in 16 of his last 17 matches. Ranocchia has played in just nine matches, but he's averaging 20.7 FanDuel points per contest.
| Per-Match Stats | Clearances | Tackles | Interceptions | Passes | FanDuel Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maguire | 5 | 1.9 | 2.2 | 40.2 | 19.8 |
| Ranocchia | 8.4 | 1.7 | 1.3 | 36.2 | 20.7 |
The weakness of Hull's squad -- a team one spot clear of the drop zone -- keeps both defenders busy on a regular basis, and that should only be heightened by a road matchup with Manchester City.
Goalie
Artur Boric, Bournemouth
FanDuel Price: $7,200
With an implied total of 0.75, Hull City is the only squad with an implied total under 1 goal. But while Manchester City's Willy Caballero has the best odds for a clean sheet, he probably won't be asked to make enough saves to be a worthwhile DFS play.
Boric, on the other hand, is usually busy enough to have a nice floor, scoring at least 14 FanDuel points in five straight outings and averaging 4.4 saves per match in that span. The matchup with Chelsea is a difficult one, but the Blues' powerful attack -- they sit sixth in possession (54%) and seventh in shots per game (14.5) -- should ensure that Boric is called into action fairly often.
In his last two matches against teams near the top of the table (Liverpool and Manchester United), Boric allowed 3 total goals, but he made a combined 12 saves to post 16.5 and 27.5 FanDuel points in those two fixtures. A clean sheet is unlikely versus Chelsea, but as those matches show, he can still have a productive fantasy day while conceding, which is exactly what makes him so appealing.
